A Great Mystery Solved

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Ephesians 3:1-3

For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles— ² assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you, ³ how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly.

(ESV)

Most of us love a great mystery.  I for one love the challenge of trying to determine who did it.  My favorite mystery stories while growing up were the Sherlock Holmes stories.  This was in part due to the fact they provided great material for doing book reports in school because they made the assignment interesting.  However, the stories intrigued me because they always took unexpected twists and turns concluding with Mr. Holmes always, using deductive reasoning, to determine who committed the crime.  In Ephesians 3:1-13, the Apostle Paul equates the Bible to a mystery that came to full revelation through Jesus Christ. 

As a Pharisee, the Apostle Paul had devoted his life to the study of scripture.  The scripture Paul had to study was the Old Testament so Paul did not have the full revelation of the mystery, only the prophetic clues provided in scripture.  It was not until Paul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus that he realized the solution to the mystery outlined in Scripture.  This is because the key to understanding Scripture lies in having access to the helper the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). 

Let us begin first however by searching scripture to determine who the Holy Spirit is.  The first mention of the Holy Spirit or Spirit of God is in Genesis 1:2 where we see him hovering over the face of the waters of the heavens and earth.  This introduction lets us know that the Holy Spirit is a vital part of the Trinity and plays an important role in the Godhead.  This leads us to ask however, exactly what is that role.

1)      Empowerment - Judges 3:7-11 tells of how the Holy Spirit came upon Othniel and empowered him to go to war and be victorious against King Cushan-Rishathaim of Mesopotamia.  Jesus understood the importance of the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and is why he commanded his Disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit’s empowerment before beginning their ministry (Acts 1:4-5). 

2)      Liberator (Romans 8:2-6) – Jesus shed blood cleanses us from our sins.  Once we are cleansed of this stain of sin, we begin living according to the Spirit and not our sinful flesh.  With our minds now governed by the Holy Spirit, we are freed from the death of the flesh and liberated to live in peace (2 Corinthians 3:17). 

3)      Revealer of Scripture (Luke 24:45-47) – Without the help of the Holy Spirit, the Bible reads like a piece of literature.  However, to discover the deeper meaning in a piece of literature, we must begin to understand the author and His reason for writing the text.  The men who encountered Jesus on the road to Emmaus had their minds opened to understanding the Scriptures because they were walking with the author of the Scriptures.  While we do not have Jesus with us today in physical form as these men did, we do have the Holy Spirit inside us and in His role as counselor, we to can experience the opening of our minds to understand the deeper meaning of Scripture. 

4)      Helper (John 14:15-17) – While everyone can enjoy complete salvation from sin, we continue to live in a world disconnected from God.  For this reason, after Jesus ascended to heaven to be with God the Father, God sent the Holy Spirit to act in the role of helper, providing comfort and guidance as we continue to live in a dark and disconnected world.   

While Paul speaks of the message of the Gospel as a great mystery, there is no reason for it to remain a mystery in our lives because the key to understanding this mystery is available to all.  To take possession of this key is simple and costs nothing for all we must do is ask.  If you have not already taken possession of this valuable key, please do so now by praying with me,

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans 3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans 6:23).  I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1 John 1:9).  I believe you died, was buried, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord of my life.

You now possess the key to understanding scripture for you now have a personal relationship with the author of the Bible.  However, you may say, isn’t the Bible written by several men over several centuries?  The answer is yes but in truth these men are ghost writers who wrote what the real author, God Himself, told them to write. 

However, just possessing the key is useless unless we use it to open the door.  In other words, we must open the book, the Bible, and study it.  We also must also regularly attend a Bible teaching church and join a small group of fellow believers to gain a greater understanding of the mystery of the Bible. 

In 2017 we will no doubt experience many changes.  While some of these changes will be positive they will most likely be accompanied by some negative changes.  Unlocking the mystery of the truths contained in the Bible is key to personally navigating these changes.  I therefore invite you to join with me this year and gain a greater understanding of the mysteries of truth contained in the Bible.